Nigeria’s Flamingos Face Tough Group at 2025 U-17 Women’s World Cup

Nigeria’s U-17 women’s football team, the Flamingos, have been placed in a difficult group for the 2025 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup. They will play in Group D against strong teams: former champions France, experienced side Canada, and newcomers Samoa.

The official draw took place on Wednesday, 4 June, at the Mohammed VI Football Academy in Rabat, Morocco. Morocco will host all the matches from 17 October to 8 November.

France, winners in 2012, are taking part for the fourth time and are expected to be strong contenders. Canada, playing for the eighth time, are aiming to do better than their fourth-place finish in 2018. Samoa are appearing at the World Cup for the first time after qualifying through the 2024 Oceania U-16 Championship.

This will be Nigeria’s seventh appearance at the U-17 Women’s World Cup. They missed only the 2018 edition. In the past, the Flamingos often went out in the quarter-finals (in 2010, 2012, and 2014). However, in 2022, they made it to the semi-finals for the first time after beating the USA on penalties and later finished third.

Nigeria qualified for the 2025 tournament by defeating Algeria and South Africa in the African qualifiers. The team now hopes to improve on their best result from two years ago.

The 2025 tournament will feature 24 teams for the first time. There are six groups. The top two teams in each group and the four best third-placed teams will move on to the Round of 16.

Group Breakdown:

Group A: Brazil, Costa Rica, Italy, Morocco
Group B: Cameroon, Korea DPR (defending champions), Mexico, Netherlands
Group C: China PR, Ecuador, Norway, USA
Group D: Canada, France, Nigeria, Samoa
Group E: Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Korea Republic, Spain
Group F: Japan, New Zealand, Paraguay, Zambia

This will be the first time the U-17 Women’s World Cup is hosted in Africa.